It’s official, the recession is over! Or is it? While politicians and economists debate when the recession officially ends, those of us in sales still face the daunting task of hitting year end targets with less than 11 weeks to go before we close the books on 2009.

What can you are your team do to impact the balance of the year and build a strong momentum heading into 2010?

1. Target your top ten accounts and look at how you can help them buy more from you. Your best customers are your best source of sales growth. Get creative with your ideas. Chances are your customer also wants to boost sales so you are really working towards the same goal. “How can we both work together to increase your sales and what you buy from us?”
2. Take advantage of the fact that your competitors are scrambling. Let’s face it competitors don’t act rationally. In fact many times they mess up the marketplace for the rest of us. The good news is that your competitors’ shortcomings are your opportunity to take business away from them. Target accounts that you know your competitors are likely screwing up. These days companies don’t have the time and money to mess around. They need a supplier who has their best interest at heart. Be that kind of supplier and take business away from your competitor.
3. Maintain a positive attitude. Some companies seem to have “customer prevention strategies”. Pay attention to how people answer the phone, how they deal with customer requests, questions and concerns. Are you treating your customers like they are important or a nuisance? If you treat them like they are a nuisance, the good news is that you will have less of them to complain about. Confront employees who share misery instead of happiness and tell them their job depends on being positive. Keep a positive, achievement oriented tone in all communications.

This kind of practical, real world advice is what you will enjoy during our upcoming e-Learn series Sales Strategies for a Challenging Marketplace. In three, action packed 45 minute sessions you and your team will get the information you need to make more sales happen now and boost your numbers heading into 2010.

There has never been a more crucial time to sharpen your sales skills and these sessions give you a cost-effective and time-sensitive way to achieve results.

Download the PDF registration form and register today. Or call Ana Sierra at COPA or email her at asierra@copa.ca

Chances are that you have at least two or three significant and aggravating people issues that you know you SHOULD do something about and haven’t.

A few examples:

• An employee or peer who complains constantly and is “high maintenance.
• A manager who is completely lacking in leadership skills and treats his peers and/or employees with disrespect.
• A supplier who consistently disappoints in delivery or service.
• A customer who is so difficult to keep happy that they are costing you all of your profit margin just to keep them.
• A sales person who will not change his habits, go after new business or hit targets consistently.
• Excuses and reasons for why things cannot and are not being done (even simple things).
• Endless meetings that don’t resolve anything and take up valuable time that could be spent doing something of greater value.
• feel free to add in your own examples here.

If you are a supervisor, manager, executive or business owner you have the ability to resolve these issues. And as an added bonus, when you do resolve the issue, chances are a number of other positive benefits will become evident.

Why do we delay doing something about situations that bug us? The number one reason is that we feel that the effort and aggravation to resolve the issue is going to be worse than simply living with the problem.

See Something, Say Something

When a leader notices a behavior or result that is unacceptable and then proceeds to ignore or defer mentioning it to the individual, they are condoning the behavior and supporting its continuation. Untrained managers and supervisors lack the leadership skills to resolve these issues effectively.

A problem is easiest to resolve when you first notice it. The longer it continues, the deeper the roots grow and the more effort and time you will expend to correct it.

Tips to Tackling the Things You Are Putting Up With

1. Imagine what it will be like to NOT have to put up with it any longer. How much happier will you be? How much happier will the people around you be? How much more money could the organization be saving or generating?
2. Plan out what you need to say, how to say it, when you should address it, if you need someone else to help you and even consider practicing or role playing the conversation ahead of time. If you think resolving the situation could result in termination, strategize with HR in advance and get the support of your manager.
3. Think about the likely objections, excuses, deflections or reasons the other person will use to avoid taking responsibility for his actions. Determine what your response will be.
4. Have the conversation. In all cases, discussion in private is warranted. The person will be defensive enough in private, let alone if you attempt to correct them in front of others.
5. For future aggravations, follow the See Something, Say Something rule and address issues earlier.

In many cases you will discover that the discussion is much easier than you expected, the situation will tend to improve almost instantly and you will be wishing you had done it much sooner.